Cotton candy trends take over state fairs: wrapped in bacon, around burritos, and more
Cotton candy is having a moment. The melt-in-your-mouth spun sugar is good enough on its own. But why eat it off a stick when you can have a monstrous mashup.
The best place to find such a sweet culinary concoction at this time of year is the state fair. From deep-fried classics to unique creations, fair food is where it's at.
Visitors to the State Fair of Texas will find a cotton candy creation among the contenders vying for this year's Big Tex Choice Awards, which highlight the best of the best from the fair. Rousso's Cotton Candy Bacon on a Stick features a thick, 12-inch piece of bacon cooked with a cotton candy glaze and wrapped inside cotton candy, then torched to caramelize the center.
If you prefer your cotton candy in liquid form, the Minnesota State Fair has some beverages right up your alley. First, there's the Cotton Candy Ice Tea from Loon Lake Ice Tea. It features brewed butterfly pea flower tea sweetened with natural flavor and cane sugar, garnished with a swirl of edible glitter and a rock candy swizzle stick to stir for a color-changing effect."
Next up is the Cloud Cooler from Spinning Wylde. This sweet treat features a flavored lemonade with a cotton candy cloud around the straw. It comes in three flavors: summer strawberry, happy huckleberry and flower power.
There's also the Cotton Candy Float at the German Root Beer and Popcorn stand. It features a cotton candy soda and Kemps vanilla ice cream topped with a giant chunk of cotton candy.
The Wisconsin State Fair also has a Cotton Candy Lemonade that looks just as delicious as it sounds. The beverage from Saz's features a blend of cool lemonade with a sweet taste of blue cotton candy, garnished with a big cloud of cotton candy on top.
While not a state fair, we could not leave State Farm Stadium in Arizona off the list. Fans at Cardinals games get to feast on one of the most creative stadium concessions: the Cotton Candy Burrito. It features a scoop of ice cream topped with Fruity Pebbles, Froot Loops, marshmallows, Skittles, M&M's, gummy bears and sprinkles, all wrapped in a blanket of cotton candy instead of a tortilla.
